Motivational Fitness Apps
Staying motivated while working out is a struggle for many people. So many, in fact, that countless applications and websites are completely dedicated to doing just that: motivating you. After trying out many of these programs, two (one for running, the other for general fitness) stand out above the rest.
Fitocracy
Fitocracy is an interesting beast. It’s part social network, part workout tracker and part role-playing game. How does that work? Easily – and effectively! The website allows you to connect with others who have similar goals or who you find personally motivating. You can help keep yourself honest and motivated by keeping in contact with them – an online buddy system. You track your workouts by entering the exercise, how many sets, how many repetitions, and finally how much weight you moved. You can save daily workouts, and repeat them as many programs do, which creates a streamlined approach to tracking. The role-playing aspect takes place when you enter your workouts. Each exercise, time spent, repetition completed counts toward a points system. Earn enough points and you will “level up.” There are different activities that will give bonus experience points, which serves to keep your fitness regimens interesting and fresh. All of this experience is wrapped up into a nice package on Fitocracy.com, and can also be used on iOS and Android phones.
Zombies, Run!
Ever been on your daily jog, your mind wandering around all the other things you could be accomplishing or just how exhausting jogging can be? I’ve been there, and it can really curb your motivation. Zombies, Run! is an innovative app available on iOS, Android and Windows Phone that aims to help brains on the run and in your head. Each run you execute with the app is turned into a mission of survival. Through the use of audio cues, you are encouraged to speed up and keep moving in an effort to not be consumed by zombies. All of this is tracked and mapped on “Zombielink” online. By completing the runs, you can accumulate items like ammunition, clothing and food. The website can break your statistics down to things like time lapsed, miles completed, calories burned and zombies avoided. Specific programs available within the application are a 5k Trainer and an interval trainer designed to help increase your running efficiency.
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